In The Spotlight

The Campaign Finance Institute (CFI) today released a draft working paper called “The Impact of Citizens United in the States: Independent Spending in State Elections, 2006-2010.” The paper found a substantial increase in independent spending whose timing straddles Citizens United but questions whether that decision explains the increase. After dividing the states into two groups, it found no difference between states that had regulated business or labor independent spending before the Court’s decision and those that had not. It also found no systematic increase in independent spending across states by corporations, labor unions, umbrella business organizations or ideological groups.

One part of the 2010 election spending story is based on publicly reportable activities. Non-party independent campaign spending in congressional elections is up by a very noticeable 73% in mid-October 2010, compared to the same time in 2008. In these reports, support for Republicans has nearly tripled the from the mid-October level for 2008. There has already been more independent spending and electioneering in 2010 than in the full election cycle of 2008 – and this is before the traditionally heavy-spending final weeks of the campaign.